Relevance. The article examines communication practices and adaptation strategies of cognitively gift­ed Alpha generation children in augmented social reality. The relevance of the study stems from rapid digi­talization and the need to understand new adaptation forms for children with high cognitive abilities, whose communication strategies emerge at the intersection of online and offline interactions. Despite growing interest in digital transformation, the specifics of gifted children's adaptation in augmented social reality remain understudied, constituting the research problem.

Purpose is to identify features of communication practices and adaptation trajectories of cognitively gifted children in augmented social reality, while determining factors that facilitate or hinder their suc­cessful integration into hybrid social spaces. The methodological framework employs augmented social reality theory, with empirical data drawn from expert interviews with educators, psychologists, and digital socialization specialists from Belgorod and Moscow regions (2025). Thematic analysis was applied for data processing.

Results reveal dual effects of augmented social reality: digital platforms expand educational opportu­nities and create alternative social circles, yet simultaneously risk hyper-specialization of interests, digital overload, and emotional burnout. Regional disparities were identified - technological inequality in Belgorod versus information overload in Moscow. Key adaptation barriers include algorithmic "filter bubbles" and deficits in offline communication skills.

Conclusions emphasize the need for hybrid educational programs, measures to reduce digital inequal­ity, and inclusive environments balancing online/offline activities. The study's practical significance lies in proposing frameworks for educational and social policies supporting gifted children amid digital trans­formation. This research contributes to childhood sociology and digital studies while opening avenues for interdisciplinary investigations of giftedness in the era of augmented social reality.

Relevance. The article is devoted to the sociological analysis of migrant labor in the urban transport system, using the taxicab sector as a case study. The scientific problem lies in the insufficient study of the specifics of migrant drivers’ employment in the context of a segmented labor market, where they are often concentrated in relatively low-status and less socially protected segments, facing institutional and cultural barriers. The purpose of the study is to analyze the perception and evaluation of migrant drivers by rep­resentatives of regulatory bodies, to identify the key challenges of their adaptation, and to determine the potential for developing effective regulatory and adaptive practices.

Materials and Methods. The empirical basis of the study is built on pilot in-depth interviews with officers of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate (GIBDD) in the Belgorod and Moscow regions, who directly interact with migrant taxi drivers. The use of a semi-structured interview format made it possible to capture not only the formalized aspects of interaction but also the nuances of everyday professional practice that are not reflected in official documentation.

Results. The thematic analysis of interviews revealed the heterogeneity of the migrant group in terms of professional competence, motivation, and adaptation, as well as identified institutional and language bar­riers hindering their full integration into the city’s transport system. Positive examples of integration were also recorded, associated with high customer ratings and the establishment of trust-based relationships with regulatory authorities.

Conclusion. The analysis of expert evaluations revealed their complex nature, combining formal and subjective, critical and positive elements. The practical significance of the study lies in the possibility of us­ing its results to improve the system of professional access, to develop preventive programs for language and professional training, and to establish balanced measures of control and support. Prospects for further research include expanding the sample, incorporating passengers’ and employers’ opinions into the socio­logical analysis, and comparing the situation across different regions.

Relevance. Under the influence of the mass media, a new image of the family was integrated into the infor­mation model of the world. The main goal of mass media is to construct a social reality, which, in our opinion, is dominant. Mass media are forced to generate known information in order to be able to diversify it from time to time so that an individual who joins the communication system can accept new information.

The purpose of the study is to identify the grounds for the formation of the family ideology in the mass media.

Materials and methods. The research used methods of theoretical analysis of the work of foreign and domes­tic researchers on issues related to the ideologeme of the family, value orientations, as well as the following meth­ods: induction and deduction and a systematic approach, which allowed to formulate a structural understanding of the ideologeme of the family in the mass media.

Conclusions. Serious and thoughtful work of the mass media is required to purposefully create the image of the family for the youth audience. The image formed by the mass media largely determines the position that soci­ety takes in relation to a particular type of family, a particular function of the family. When choosing a newspaper or magazine, radio or television program, or visiting an Internet page of a certain social orientation, a young person is often potentially ready to agree with the point of view about the functional purpose of the family that will be offered by these media or social media

Relevance of the study stems from the social significance of volunteerism as a mass movement and the need to understand the mechanisms of personal growth in a group context.

Purpose. Based on D. A. Leontiev’s concept of personal potential and current advances in social psy­chology, we propose a model that considers meaning as a key mediator linking group processes to the development of individual psychological resources.

Results. We first clarify the concept of personal potential and its resource-functional structure, which includes three groups of psychological resources (self-determination, achievement, and preservation). Next, a volunteer group is analyzed as a special meaning-making environment that provides value cohesion and a “we-identity” among members. We highlight the multifaceted functions of personal meaning – goal-set­ting, support of self-regulation, and resilience – in volunteers’ personal growth. The core of the paper de­scribes a dual-circuit model comprising “meaning” and “regulatory” developmental circuits connected by a communicative-prosocial channel. Key mediating variables (meaningful involvement, collective efficacy, and trust/identity) and five socio-psychological mechanisms of group influence (meaning interiorization, affective co-regulation, efficacy calibration, normative habit integration, and communicative transduction of experience) are identified. We formulate the theoretical propositions and hypotheses of the model, un­derscoring the central mediating role of meaning in the “group – individual” linkage.

Conclusions. The proposed model expands the understanding of personality development in group settings and can serve as a basis for further empirical research and practical programs for supporting vol­unteer communities.

Relevance. Modern education places high demands on students' independence, self-organization, and responsibility. The ability to effectively manage one's actions (self-regulation) becomes a key factor in successful learning.

Purpose. The study of the relationship between academic performance and the organization of the study group (acting as a socio-psychological factor), the style of self-regulation of behavior and educational motivation (acting as individual psychological factors) of medical university students

Materials and methods. The total size of the research sample was 427 people aged 18-22 years study­ing at a medical university. The study was carried out using the Arka hardware methodology (A.S. Cher­nyshev, S.V. Sarychev), the SSPM questionnaire (V.I. Morosanova), and the SHAM academic motivation questionnaire (authors: O.A. Gordeeva et al.).

The results and conclusions. The socio-psychological factor is the organization of the group in which the student studies – in groups with a high level of organization, academic performance is significantly higher than in groups with a low level of organization. Educational motivation and self-regulation act as individual psychological factors.

The revealed statistically significant correlations between academic performance indicators and the general level of self-regulation, as well as between the general level of self-regulation and achievement motivation, indicate that a high level of academic achievement ("study well and get good grades") is the goal that achievement motivation is focused on.

Relevance. The presence of emotional intelligence, the presence of emotional competence of a specialist in various fields of activity and communication determines his professional and personal success. Modern research shows that for teachers, a high psycho-emotional culture is a necessary attribute of effectiveness in working with students. Objective conditions are being created for studying the relationship between the severity of emotional intelligence and pedagogical skills. In the practice of teaching and educating students, methods of more detailed acquaintance with the manifestations, factors of the presence and development of emotional intelligence should be used. This can help to increase the level of pedagogical abilities of students and further ensure high productivity in school.

Purpose. To identify indicators of the ability to teach, the level of development of emotional intelligence among students. To analyze the relationship between the level of development of emotional intelligence and pedagogical abilities of university students.

Materials and methods. 37 undergraduate students participated in the pilot psychodiagnostic study. Psychodiagnostics of students' pedagogical abilities was carried out using a questionnaire to determine the degree of severity of A.N. Aminov's pedagogical abilities. To study the characteristics of emotional intelligence in the subjects, the emotional intelligence questionnaire "Emin" (D.V. Lyusin) was used. The relationship between the level of development of pedagogical abilities and emotional intelligence was indicated and described using the r–Pearson correlation.

Results. As a result of the conducted research, the average level of pedagogical abilities among first-year students is overwhelming. Among the subjects throughout the sample, there is a decrease in the ability to manage, understand, and accept their own and others' emotions. The ability to control one's emotional manifestations and expression is indicated. The manifestations of interpersonal and intrapersonal emotional intelligence are reduced. The study revealed significant direct correlations between indicators of pedagogical abilities and the development of emotional intelligence on the following scales: the ability to control other people's emotions, inspire other people, exercise external control, manage their own and others' emotions.

Conclusions. According to their ideas, the high level of pedagogical abilities of future teachers in their first year of study at the university is associated with a high level of ability to manage their own and other people's emotions, as well as expressions, the ability to generally influence and manipulate people around them. At the same time, the respondents' high level of pedagogical abilities is less associated with empathy, compassion, and acceptance of their own and others' genuine feelings.

Relevance. Many researchers emphasize the significant impact of self-esteem on human behavior and activity, as well as on their socio-psychological adaptation. The formation of self-esteem in the process of personality development takes a long time and plays a key role. Adolescence is a particularly important stage for this. During this period, self-awareness is actively developing, which is manifested in the desire to properly evaluate oneself, use one's abilities and reach a level of maturity. However, adolescence is also vulnerable to the development of various forms of deviant behavior. This is due to increased sensitivity to the opinions and assessments of others, which makes social factors especially significant.

Purpose. To study the peculiarities of the influence of the level of self-esteem of a personality on the severity and types of aggression in adolescents, taking into account gender.

Materials and methods. Theoretical analysis of scientific publications on the research topic; organizational methods: cross-sectional method, in which subjects of the same age group were examined; empirical methods: S.A. Budassi's self-assessment methodology and the Bass-Darkey questionnaire for analyzing aggressive reactions (adapted by S.E. Enikolopov); methods of statistical processing of the collected data.

Results. Boys and girls have high levels of aggression when they have high self-esteem. With low self-esteem, both sexes have a high level of hostility, manifested in the form of reactions of resentment and suspicion. The relationship between adolescents' self-esteem and their aggressive reactions is characterized by a predominance of a positive vector and a high density of connections among girls. This means that girls' overestimated self-esteem manifests itself in aggressive reactions, mainly in the form of indirect and verbal aggression. In boys, on the contrary, the negative vector of interrelations prevails, which indicates their reverse nature. With low self-esteem, boys exhibit the most intense reactions of hostility in interpersonal relationships, expressed in resentment and suspicion.

Conclusions. The results of the work can be used to develop effective preventive programs aimed at optimizing the level of self-esteem and reducing the risk of aggression, improving the psychological health of adolescents.